The Early Morning Phonecall: Remittances From a Refugee Diaspora Perspective Anna Lindley

WP-07-47

Introduction

Remittances are an important strand in the relationship between migration and social change in migrants’ countries of origin and there is increasing interest in the role of remittances in conflict and post-conflict countries. Yet little is known about remittances from the diaspora perspective, and much less about refugees remitting. This paper makes three contributions, based on analysis of survey and ethnographic evidence on the remittance experiences of Somali refugees in London . First, it argues that the diaspora perspective is critical element in understanding remittance processes, and that remitting can have substantial social and economic repercussions for migrants. Second, it argues that just as migrants are not ‘just labour’, remittances are not ‘just money’, pointing to the importance of analysing the social texture of the remittance process. Third, it argues that the nature of forced migration may shape remitting in various ways which merit further exploration.